Before Sporting Cristal's trip to Tarma, Hernán Barcos made the stakes clear. The rimense side heads into its Fecha 16 visit to ADT knowing a win would keep it firmly in the fight for the Torneo Clausura title.
Barcos said the team is prepared for the challenge and understands what is on the line. Sporting Cristal has had difficulties playing at altitude this year, but the attacker stressed that the group is ready to compete and bring back the three points.
"Estamos preparados, sabemos jugar en altura. Nos puede ir bien o mal, pero estamos preparados y sabemos que nos jugamos la vida," Barcos said.
He also pointed to the tight title race and the fact that Sporting Cristal cannot afford to slip. "Nos ha costado jugar en altura, pero hoy estamos peleando el campeonato y no tenemos margen de error, por lo que esperamos traernos los tres puntos," he said.
What is at stake in Tarma
The matchup against ADT is a direct test for Sporting Cristal in the Clausura race. Barcos noted that there are three teams with the same points, but said Cristal still controls its own fate. That makes this road game especially important, since the team does not need other results to define what happens next.
After the trip to Tarma, Sporting Cristal is scheduled to close the tournament at home against Cienciano in Lima. That means the visit to ADT could go a long way toward shaping the final stretch of the season.
For now, the message from Barcos is straightforward: Sporting Cristal is prepared, aware of the challenge, and focused on taking three points from Tarma.
